Fort de Vijfhoek

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"Fort Vijfhoek, which in Dutch means pentagon, has one gate on its south side and five watchtowers. Each tower is named: Zeeland, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Raamsdonk and Buschoten."

"Samarang Situatie" 1695, the circled part is the Fort de Vijfhoek. Plattegrond or sitemap of Semarang by Mendert De Roy. Source: Nationaal Archief.

Sketch of the Fort de Vijfhoek van Samarangh along with its five bastions in 1708. Source: Oud en Nieuw Oost-Indiën, François Valentijn (1666-1727).

In 1708, the planning proposal for Fort Vijfhoek was implemented by the retention of the old fort and improvements in construction, design, and material as the centre of the VOC's military activities and trade settlement. Fort Vijfhoek, which in Dutch means pentagon, has one gate on its south side and five watchtowers. Each tower is named: Zeeland, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Raamsdonk and Buschoten.

According to common interpretation among historians who focused on the topic of Semarang's history, in the second half of the 18th century, the fort began to be demolished in order to connect the inside of the fort with the surrounding neighbourhood. European-style settlements began to be built on the site, especially towards the southern side of Semarang. To date, no historical record has been found stating the exact year when the Fort de Vijfhoek was demolished and developed into Semarang Ciry Fort but it is estimated to have occurred between 1741-1756.